Apparatus for practicing bowling



Se t. 11, 1962 L. BESTERDA APPARATUS FOR PRACTICING BOWLING 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 51, 1962 FIGJ. ,;=z,gg

INVENTOR LOUIS Besterda L. BESTERDA APPARATUS FOR PRACTICING BOWLING Sept. 11, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 31, 1962 I ll 1 INVENTOR LOUIS Bescerda United states This invention relates to a device for practicing the game of bowling and for providing instructions in the game, and more particularly to a type of device shown in my Patent No. 2,994,969, dated August 8, 1961.

In said patent is shown a screen or panel bearing the representation or simulation of a bowling alley, and provided at the lower end of the screen is a frame having a pivotal gate or cross piece. In practicing with the device a simulated ball-delivery swing of the arm is directed through the frame to cause the arm practicing said swing to contact with the gate and swing the same upwardly provided that the swing of the arm has been directed properly toward the representation of the pins on the screen.

In the use of the above-described device it has been found that some players exhibit a tendency to impart a lateral swing or curve to their arm after it has passed the gate, thus failing to follow through with their delivery swing and if such a swing of the arm had been performed in actual playing of a bowling match the possibility of imparting an undesirable curvature to the ball would be likely.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an instruction and practicing device which will eliminate the possibility of the player improperly performing a ball-delivery, by providing sighting and guiding means causing a follow through action of the arm of the player during a simulated ball-deliver swing of his arm. It is an object of the invention to provide means by which the proper delivery swing will be developed by practice.

It is an object of the invention to provide a device of the character described by which adjustability of the sighting and guiding means will be had and numerous other advantages will be attained.

More particularly, the invention contemplates the provision of a screen or panel bearing the representation of a bowling alley and provided at each of its upper and lower limits with a frame acting as sighting and arm-guiding means through which the arm-swing of the player is to be passed in performing a simulated ball-delivery.

With these and other objects to be hereinafter set forth in view, I have devised the arrangement of parts to be described and more particularly pointed out in the claims appended hereto.

In the accompanying drawings, wherein an illustrative embodiment of the invention is disclosed,

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of a screen or panel bearing the representation of a bowling alley and to which the sighting and guiding means have been applied;

FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view through the screen and the guide means thereon;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of the end of one of the arms of one of the guide frames;

FIG. 4 is a top plan view of one of the guide frames;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view, taken substantially on the line 55 of FIG. 4, looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view through the arm of the guide frame to which the pivotal rod or gate is attached;

FIG. 7 shows the pivot which connects the arms of the guide frames to the cross rods thereof, and

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the clip which attaches one of the frames to the bottom cross member of the screen.

atent 3,652,992 Patented Sept. 11, 1962 Referring to the drawings, 1 indicates a panel or screen, which may be constructed similarly to those used for motion picture or slide projection, and the same bears a pictorial representation of a bowling alley, including the set-up pins 4 and the flooring 5 of the alloy. The illustration graphically represents the aspect of an alley to a person standing in front of the screen. At the top, the screen is provided with a cross member or rod 2, and at the bottom it is provided with a. rod 34. The screen, when in its rolled-up condition, is rolled around a rod 34 that is rotative within and confined with the rolled-up screen inside of a tube 3. This construction is known in motion picture and similar screens. The screen can be vertically supported in any suitable way such as on a tripod or suspended from hooks or otherwise disposed.

Adjustably mounted on the tube 3 is a clip shown at 30 which may be composed of plastic or metal, said clip being provided with an arcuately curved portion 31 which springily fits around the tube 3 and holds itself thereon by its resilient grip around the tube. This arrangement is such that the clip can be fitted at any desired location along the length of the tube according to the positioning of the player and whether he is right or left handed, and it will hold its position at any point thereon. The clip 39 is provided with a reversely-curved hook portion 32 into which is fitted a cross rod 11 of tubular form, forming a part of a lower guide frame 6. The hookshaped part of the clip springily embraces the tube 11 while firmly holding it, yet it permits the tube to be adjusted lengthwisely in the clip.

Pivotally attached at the opposite ends of the tube 11 are rods constituting arms 15 and 16. The pivots '12 which attach these arms to the tube 11 consist of disks held together by eyelets. Flexible tongues 13 and 14 extend from the disks and respectively enter the ends of the tubes 11, 15 and 16, the flexibility of these tongues permitting a limited springy up and down pivotal movement of the arms, while a greater pivotal movement in a horizontal direction is permitted by the hinge proper.

Secured over the end of the arm 15 remote from the hinge 12, is a cap 17 containing a sleeve 18 (FIG. 6), with a space 43 provided within the cap 10 and located be tween the end of the arm 15 and one end of the sleeve 18. A stem 20 is located within the sleeve 18 and it has a limited slidable and axial movement therein, which movement is limited by a head 19 provided on the inner end of the stem and located within the space 43 and restricted by the limits of said space. The stem is freely rotative within the sleeve 18.

Shown at 22 is a gate member which is in the form of a. rod having a bent end extending through a hole in the stem 22 at a point beyond the end of the cap 17. The bent end of the rod 22 is provided with a head 27 at one end, thereby maintaining said end of the rod 22 connected to the stem 20. Provided at the opposite end of the rod 22 is a bent end 25 which engages around the arm 16 when the rod 22 is in its extended or closed position shown in FIG. 4, at which time the rod extends across the front of the frame between the two arms 15 and 16 and closes the front end of the frame. If desired, the arm 16 can be provided with a notch 33 (FIG. 3) to receive the part of the rod 22 that lies across it. The arm 16 is provided at one end with a head 24 to prevent the sliding 01f of the rod 22 when the frame is inclined down wardly. Provided in the arm 15 is a recess 23 into which the bent end 25 of the rod 22 can be fitted when the frame is collapsed or stored.

In operation, the frame 6 is fitted onto the tube 3 by means of the clip 30 at a required position along the lower edge of the screen and at a point along the rod or tube 3 where it is desired that the player shall position himself. A player standing in front of the screen and facing the same can then simulate a ball-delivery swing with his arm and if the swing is properly executed, his arm will enter into the lower frame 6, strildng the gate or rod 22 and swinging it upwardly and causing it to drop down vertically and hang downwardly from the stem 20, as indicated in dotted lines in FIG. 2. When only one of these sighting and guiding frames is used, as was suggested in my Patent No. 2,994,969, there is often a tendency on the part of the player to allow his arm to swing or curve laterally after passing through the lower frame '6, resultantly performing an undesirable curving movement without a follow through, and in actual play thus producing a swing likely to impart a curve to the ball. To prevent this and to guide the arm of the player through a proper ball-delivery movement, there is provided at the top of the screen, a frame shown at 7, similar to that shown at 6 and located at the bottom of the screen. The frame 7 is mounted on the top red 2 of the screen by a clip 8 constructed somewhat similar to the clip 3% in that it has an arcuate portion 9 which embraces the rod 2 and has a reversely curved hook member 10 into which the cross rod 11 on the upper frame -7 fits.

In using the described appartus, the two frames 6 and 7 are fitted on the respective ends of the screen and in the desired vertical alignment or spaced relationship in order to require the player to move his arm through both of the frames and by such movement to dislodge the gates or rods 22. of both of them when simulating a ball-delivery swing. The manner in which. the two frames 6 and 7 are attached to the cross members 2 and 3 at the opposite ends of the screen, enables the frames 6 and 7 to be positioned along the length of the screen at the top and bottom thereof at any desired points. In the use of the frames, the upper frame 7 is preferably inclined downwardly substantially as shown in FIG. 2, or at any convenient angle. Both of the frames 6 and 7, being rotative in the hook portions of the clips 8 and 30, can be inclined as desired according to the height of the player. Also, the pivotal connection of the arms 15 and 16 to the cross member 11, enables these arms to be swung laterally, while remaining in parallelism according to desired positioning.

Having thus described a single embodiment of the invention, it is obvious that the same is not to be restricted thereto, but is broad enough to cover all structures coming within the scope of the annexed claims.

What I claim is:

1. A bowling practice and instruction device comprising, a screen bearing the representation of a bowling alley with pins at one end thereof, each of the opposite ends of the screen being defined by a cross bar, a frame fitted on each of the cross bars and projecting forwardly therefrom, the forward end of each of the frames being closed by a pivotal cross-piece, the frames being adjustable on the cross bars to position the same relatively to one another in a manner to require the cross-pieces on both of the frames to be pivotally lifted by the arm of a player to thereby open the front of the frames when the arm swing necessary to provide a correct ball-delivery is executed.

2. A bowling practice and instruction device comprising, a vertically-disposed screen bearing the representation of a bowling alley, a bar extending along the top of the screen, a clip fitted on and adjustable along the length of the bar, a tube at the lower end of the screen, a clip fitted thereon and adjustable along the length of the tube, each of the clips carrying a frame, each frame including a pair of spaced, pivoted side members, the side members being connected at one end by a rod, said rod being pivoted to one of the side members and being capable of being swung away from the second side member when struck by the arm of a player, the frames extending forwardly of the screen and being positioned respectively on the bar and tube so that the rods on the frames will be successively swung upwardly on their pivots by the arm of a player when the players arm has passed through a correct ball-delivery swing.

3. A bowling practice and instruction device comprising, a vertical screen bearing the representation of a bowling alley, and guide means positioned at the upper and lower limits of the screen and in such positions relative to one another that parts of the guide means will be contacted by the arm of a player practicing a ball-delivery swing in front of the screen and when such swing of his arm has been correctly performed.

4. A bowling practice and instruction device comprising the means set forth in claim 3 and wherein each of the guide means consists of a cross-piece, a pair of arms pivoted at one end thereto, a rod having one end pivotally coupled to one of the arms and extending across the front of the frame and resting on the second arm, said rod constituting the part of each of the guide means which is contacted by the arm of the player during its swing in front of the screen.

5. An apparatus for bowling practice and instruction comprising, a vertically-arranged screen bearing the reproduction of a bowling alley, a cross piece at each of the upper and lower ends of the screen, a pair of guide frames for directing the arm swing of a bowler positioned in front of the screen, means for mounting the frames respectively on the upper and lower cross-pieces, said mounting means permitting the frames to be longitudinally adjusted along the cross-pieces and also permitting vertical inclination of the frames, each of the frames being closed at its forward end by a pivoted gate member, which gate members are swung to open position by contact with the arm of a player performing a satisfactory ball-delivery swing in front of the screen.

6. A bowling instruction and practice device comprising the means set forth in claim 5, wherein the means for mounting each frame on its supporting cross-piece consists of a springy clip having an arcuate part engaging around the cross-piece and provided with a reverselycurved hook portion embracing a part of one of the frames.

7. A bowling instruction and practice device comprising, a screen bearing the representation of a bowling alley, a frame for guiding the swing of a bowlers arm during a simulated ball-delivery swing performed in front of the screen, said frame having a cross rod, a clip for resiliently attaching said cross rod to a part of the screen, the clip being rotative relatively to the part which supports it to thereby incline the frame if inclination thereof is desired, an arm pivotally attached at each end of the cross rod, a rod pivotally coupled to one of the arms and extended across the frame to rest upon the second arm, said rod constituting a freely-pivotal gate which is swung to a dependent position from the arm on which it is attached when it is struck by the arm of a player during a simulated ball-delivery swing.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,994,969 Besterda Aug 8, 1961 

